Kiteboarding or kitesurfing is becoming a rapidly growing extreme sport for land, water or snow. Commonly used traction kites are foil or inflatable, with a leading edge, where (with reference to FIG. 2) two or three 3 lines 6a, 6b are attached, and a trailing edge, usually where two lines (control lines) 7a, 7b are attached. Kites of this type are shown in US 2003/0154898; US 2003/0154898, US 2002/0088385 and US 2002/084384. These lines are between 20 and 30 meters in length and are attached to a control bar 2. The kite pilot uses the control bar to steer the kite and manage the power of the kite through a sheeting system that shortens or lengthens the leading edge lines. The sheeting system is known in the art, and generally consists of a hollow sleeve 10 through which the leading edge lines 6a, 6b run, and which sleeve can slide up and down along the lines to change the effective length of these lines. The control bar and sheeting system may also have some form of safety device allowing the kite pilot to immediately de-power or detach oneself from the kite and its lines.
For safety and practical reasons of space, it is important that the lines are untangled prior to attaching a power kite to the lines, and it is equally important to make sure the lines are attached to the appropriate places on the kite prior to launching. A crossed or tangled line can result in loss of control and an unbalanced kite that can cause severe injury.
Commonly the kite pilot will wind the lines of the kite around the control bar for storage when not using the kite. Most control bars provide hooks or perpendicular finger extensions 4 at each end for this purpose.
When preparing the kite for launching the lines require careful layout, unwinding and ensuring they are untangled and uncrossed. This can take time and space at the launching area.